Federal COs work for free while inmates get paid

Roughly 38,000 correction officers at federal lockups across the country are required to keep working during the government shutdown

By S.A. MillerNew York Post

WASHINGTON, D.C. — The government shutdown has turned federal prisons upside down — the guards are required to work without pay while the inmates collect their checks.

Justice Department policy stipulates that thousands of hardened criminals with jobs making everything from furniture to clothes to license plates for Federal Prison Industries will keep getting paid during the spending stalemate.

The roughly 38,000 correction officers at federal lockups across the country aren’t so lucky. The correction officers and other prison employees were designated as “essential” and required to keep working without pay.